me. “Are you sure?”
Emmy cut in. “We’re fine. Your machine sounds like it’s on the blink, though. Every time Lara inhales funny, it goes haywire.”
I forced myself to stay calm as Emmy stared down the nurse, who didn’t seem convinced. “Those monitors are normally very reliable.”
“You should get that one checked. But don’t worry, I’ll call you if Lara needs help.”
I smiled and nodded, and the nurse backed out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind her, I uncurled my fingers from the blanket and turned back to Emmy.
“Man? What man? Where was he taking me?”
“He claimed to the hospital, but he hadn’t bothered calling 911, and he took off after we made him put you down. He also had a light-coloured car that would match the paint we found. Nick said you’ve had trouble with a stalker, and we’re trying to find out if the two are connected.”
“How close did you get to him?”
“Pretty much toe to toe.”
“Do you remember what he smelled like?”
“What he smelled like?”
“I’ve never seen him, but I can tell when he’s been in my apartment because it smells funny afterwards.”
Emmy flicked her gaze towards the window as she pondered. “Cigarettes. Not just his clothes. His breath too, so a smoker. And there was something else. Aftershave. Not sure I could pick out which one, though.”
“It’s him. Tobacco smoke and cheap cologne.”
My pulse sped up again as I realised how close he’d come to abducting me, and I glared at the monitor screen. Emmy reached out, unclipped the sensor from my thumb, and stuck it on her own instead. The machine slowed right away. Forty-seven beats a minute. How did she do that?
Free of technology’s watchful eyes, I gripped the sheets in panic again. “My life’s getting worse and worse. Sometimes I wonder why I get out of bed in the mornings.”
“No, this is good.”
“Good? How?”
“Because it means we’re working one case instead of two. One stalker. We don’t need to split up our team.”
“What team?”
“I told you, we run a security company. We’ll find the guy. Don’t worry.”
She sounded far more confident than I felt. “How?”
“Don’t sweat the details.” She reached over and checked my pulse, then clipped the sensor back onto me. “Right, I need to speak to our people. There’s a guard outside the door, and the only people allowed in are verified medical staff and our team. No stalkers.” She threw me a backwards glance as she sauntered out the door. “Relax.”
CHAPTER 46
EMMY CLOSED THE door behind her, and I thumped my head down on the pillow. Ouch. What she’d said about Nick left my mind spinning, even more than the accident already had.
Nick truly cared for me, or so she said. I wasn’t just a convenient fling. If I’d known that a few days ago, not even the apocalypse could have wiped the smile from my face, but today? Finding out Nick was some sort of commando left me unbalanced. And Jana?
Emmy told me she’d died because of Nick’s work, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried history might repeat itself. But then again, I’d managed to attract two crazies all by myself, hadn’t I? First Billy, and now a stalker. If Emmy’s guess about the accident proved correct, they’d both tried to kill me, and twice Nick and his training had gotten me out of nasty situations.
So, did I give Nick my heart? Oh, who was I kidding? He already had it. But did I try to salvage what was left to prevent a bigger heartache in the future?
What if he went off to work one day and never came back? If that happened now, I’d be devastated. But if it happened a year down the line, after Nick gave me more of the sweetness that turned my insides into spun sugar, I’d break completely.
I longed for Momma’s words of wisdom. She’d have known the answer, just as she always did. Like back in the early days of my relationship with Billy when she’d tried to warn me away from him, but I’d been too young and too headstrong to listen.
Would she approve of Nick? I liked to think so.
Voices in the hallway startled me, and seconds later, Emmy returned. Only this time, she wasn’t alone. I took in the newcomer—a teenage girl wearing ripped jeans, a pink sweater that hung off one shoulder, and high-heeled boots. She radiated the confidence Billy had knocked out of me at her age.
“Lara, meet Tia. She’s